This question attracted a good number of candidates. While some candidates performed creditably, others failed to highlight the necessary points, thereby losing most of the obtainable marks. Candidates should have responded to the question thus:
(a) - it had a strong and uncompromising link to religion.
- it was also strongly linked to death.
- it was controlled by strict conventionalism.
- the cult of the dead (life after death) is a belief that is fundamental to
Ancient Egyptian art.
- the supremacy of the king and gods is also a belief that drove the art of the ancient Egyptians.
- eternity of the kings which underlie the youthful and agile representation of the king, irrespective of age.
(b) The major art-forms in ancient Egypt include:
- Wall paintings (murals).
- Sculptures – (relief and free-standing).
- Architecture.
(c) - heads, pelvis and legs are represented in profile.
- the upper torso and eyes were shown frontally.
- forms are flat and not represented in graded tones that could give an effect of three dimensionality.
- forms did not strictly follow rules of perspective.
- in painting, the skin of men were depicted in dark tones while those of women were depicted in lighter tones.
- the size of figures were presented in order of importance in the society. Therefore, the dominant figure is always that of the king, followed by the figure of the queen. The figures of the common people and slaves were often the smallest.
- in sculpture, medium was determined mainly by position. The kings and queens were represented in bronze, the nobles in stones and the common people and slaves were represented in wood. |
